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Air’s Champagne Parlor is All About the Bubbly
Beer, wine and even cider bars abound in NYC, but Air’s Champagne Parlor is one of the few area drinkeries devoted to bubbly. To be fair, the Riddling Widow briefly preceded it, but owner Ariel Arce was actually beverage director during its tenure, as well as Birds & Bubbles before that, and Chicago’s Pops for Champagne (not to mention Grant Achatz’s exclusive, original The Office) before that. Meaning her reputation as queen of Cuvèe absolutely proceeds her.
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Where to Celebrate Oktoberfest 2017
If you’re already mourning the loss of summer, Oktoberfest is a reliable way to get you over the hump. Essentially spanning the duration of fall (kicking off on September 16th this year & extending all the way to October 31st, allowing revelers to seamlessly transition to Halloween), the 16 to 18-day festival is a giddy saturnalia of German culture…
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Spotlight on the Finalists for the 2017 Vendy Awards
As a fun challenge to the James Beard Awards, the Vendy ceremony — now in its 13th year — is dedicated to honoring the very best in street food. So here’s who’s in the running during the September 16th event at Governors Island; from an artisanal twinkie baker to an upstart french toast sandwich maker, to a Chinese meat skewer purveyor, whose been tapped for the Vendy Cup…
Most Recent Dish
Topping Rose House – Reviewed
Who knew one of the best new restaurants in New York would open in the Hamptons? Bridgehampton to be specific. I didn’t see that coming. The Hamptons are better known for their wide beaches, grand houses and lavish parties. Not food. At least, not til Topping Rose House came along. Just taste the Ravioli with Housemade Ricotta and you’ll see what I mean. It’s a game changer – a singular and mammoth-size ravioli cradling impossibly fresh Ricotta, scattered with slivers of Shitake Mushroom, tender green Asparagus and fresh herbs. It’s glossed in a Beurre Fondue that amplifies the richness of the dish without overdoing the dish. It’s a divine pasta that will compel you to make another reservation before you even leave the restaurant.
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Savoring Rhubarb Season
Besides serving as a tart counterpoint to sweet, spring strawberries in a seasonal pie, what the heck is rhubarb and what else can you do with it? Usually one of the first edible plants ready for harvest in mid to late spring, rhubarb has large, triangular leaves and crisp, celery-like stalks (fun fact: food stylists actually dye celery with red coloring when they need rhubarb in the off-season!) Owing to the number of anthocynins present, a pigment also found in cherries, raspberries and red cabbage, rhubarb can be crimson, speckled pink or light green. And although scarlet-stalked rhubarb is generally more appealing to the eye, color has no effect either way on flavor, texture or aroma.
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Q & A with Danji & Hanjan’s Hooni Kim
Having grown up in Manhattan, trained at the French Culinary Institute, and worked at two of the top, high-end eateries in the city (Daniel and Masa), it wasn’t a given that chef Hooni Kim would open a Korean restaurant. “I’ve always been more of a New Yorker than anything else. But I realized that at the best restaurants, chefs puts themselves onto the plate,” he says. “Once you eat their food, you should have an idea of who this person is, what they’re about and what their experiences are. “
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Gourmet Gossip NYC: June 2013
In this great dining city of ours, barely a day passes without news of an exciting new restaurant opening, a devastating closing, a shocking chef shuffle, or in the case of Dominique Ansel Bakery’s seriously buzzed about Cronut (a donut/croissant hybrid) a groundbreaking, must-try dish. So in this new segment, we’ll keep you apprised of the industry’s most noteworthy bits and bites, from celeb-chef Elizabeth Falkner’s reappearance on the Upper East Side, to the hopeful return of al fresco brunch in Brooklyn.
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Bulgogi Beef & Spring Asparagus Bibimbap
According to Danji and Hanjan’s chef and owner, Hooni Kim, you can’t really get authentic Korean ingredients in NYC. We’re certain a slew of joints in Koreatown would beg to differ. Either way that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t make the most of what we have and put our own seasonal twist on a Korean classic.
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Foolproof Egg Separator
Ever try to separate the yolk from the egg white? I don’t care how adept you are in the kitchen, it never gets easier. Crack it against the side of a bowl and you’ll likely get bits of shell in the bowl. Try to scoop up the yolk too aggressively and you’ll wind up with a broken yolk and have to start all over again. It’s an art few can master and it almost always get messy, which is why we’re obsessed with Quirky’s Pluck.
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The Ultimate Father’s Day Dining Guide
Far be it from us to indulge in gender stereotypes. We know a lot of manly fathers who can appreciate a good pear and goat cheese salad or an elderflower-based cocktail. And yet, there are still plenty of guys who crave nothing more than a shot of bourbon and a hunk of beef with a steak knife driven through the middle. So we’ve covered our bases this year to make sure we satisfy all kinds of dads this Father’s Day. From BBQ at Hill Country to steaks at the legendary Keens Steakhouse and even a beer crawl at Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden in Queens.
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Fire Up the Grilled Plum & Goat Cheese Pizza
Anyone can throw burgers and dogs on the barbecue and call it a (Memorial) day. But why not take your party to the next level this year, by adding a few flame-grilled pizzas to the holiday menu? We’ve topped our smoky rounds of dough with sweet grilled plums (you can use any sturdy fruit, like peaches or melons), peppery greens, and dollops of tangy goat cheese, but the sky’s the limit once you get the method down. To serve, simply cut your pies into small squares for a tasty starter, or supplement with salad, grilled shrimp, or flame-broiled pork tenderloin as part of the main event!
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Restaurant Spotting: Antica Pesa
Brooklyn’s own Berry Street is a somewhat unlikely location for the first stateside outpost of Antica Pesa, a 90-year-old restaurant situated in a former Vatican tollhouse in Trastevere. Because instead of being perfectly suited to shabby chic hipsters, the sleek new restaurant seems destined to follow in the path of its predecessor, becoming an out-of-the-way haven for the rich, famous and jet set (an image search yields twenty pictures of Madonna, Ashton Kutcher and Thomas Hardy, juxtaposed with delicately swirled plates of Cacio e Pepe).
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A New & Improved Nick And Toni’s in the Hamptons for 2013
It’s one thing for a Hamptons restaurant to draw crowds during the height of the summer season. But the 25-year-old Nick and Toni’s is a veritable institution year round, attracting both local, loyal clientele, and a steady stream of celebrities as varied as Bill Clinton, Mick Jagger, Steven Spielberg and Martha Stewart.
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Where to Celebrate Memorial Day 2013
Memorial Day is the ultimate indicator that summer is just around the bend. (We can almost taste it!) Come this Monday, we all get an extra day off from work. Every local beach and park will officially open, bustling with the flip-flopped and (weather permitting) bathing suit-clad. And most importantly, the smell of barbecue and salty sea creatures will fill the air. So where to eat this celebratory, three day weekend?
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Fruit Scoop & Slice
This time of year, it’s easy to find juicy and colorful fresh fruit to work into dinner or to put out while you’re entertaining. Markets around the city are showcasing vibrant displays of mangoes, papayas, and avocados, and after a long winter, they’re a sight for sore eyes. But while finding the best fruits this time of year isn’t a challenge, getting them from the farm to the table (wink) might be. Ever try to keep avocado looking presentable while separating it from the peel? Good luck.
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Lightened Up Wiener Schnitzel with Tomato & Fennel Salad
Austrian favorites like goulash and spaetzle are perfectly suited for winter weather. But why shouldn’t we be able to enjoy them just as often now that it’s spring? We’re taking a cue from the refined wiener schnitzel at Seåsonal in Midtown, by adding our own, figure-friendly, and more importantly, seasonal twists to the classic dish.
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Q & A with Edi & the Wolf & The Third Man’s Eduard Frauneder and Wolfgang Ban
There aren’t really a whole lot of Austrian restaurants in the city. That’s what makes Eduard Frauneder and Wolfgang Ban such ambassadors of the cuisine. Ever since opening their first restaurant, Seäsonal, in 2008, the pair has refused to be pigeonholed; consistently showcasing Germanic dishes that go well beyond sausage, fried potatoes and Weiner Schnitzel.
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Where to Eat At The Great Googa Mooga 2013
The Great GoogaMooga sounds like one of the most fantastic food festivals imaginable. Almost 200 of New York’s best restaurants, breweries and wine purveyors assembled in the bucolic Nethermead Meadow in Prospect Park. Fun, ticketed pop-up dinners like Roberta’s Urban Renaissance Faire, April Bloomfield’s The Spotted Pig Haus (a play on the German beer garden), and Gabe Stulman’s Little Wisco Seafood Boil and BBQ. And oh yeah, there’s music too.
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Best of Bangkok
It’s one thing to eat Thai food in America. It’s another thing entirely to eat Thai food in Thailand. The flavors are brighter, brighter, and more, well, Thai. If you get the chance to go to Bangkok, eat your face off. Seriously. Aside from seeing the Golden Buddha, The Grand Palace and a few other buddhas, you’ll want to focus your efforts solely on food. Especially the street food and just as importantly, the dive joints.
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New York’s Best Outdoor Dining
Spring is about three things… long days, balmy nights, and eating and drinking outdoors. Luckily, the city has tons of al fresco options, and we don’t just mean a few table and chairs spread out on the sidewalk (although that’s perfectly enjoyable too). So if you really want to make the most of the season, study up on our outdoor dining guide, featuring the bucolic garden at Pure Food and Wine in Gramercy, and the sexy rooftop at Juliette in Brooklyn!
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Gizmo Girl’s Glass Marinade Set
t’s true. We’re not loyalists where the kitchen is concerned. We’re always looking for the next best gadget, anything to make our lives easier, save precious prep time, or just do something better. Well, we found another goodie: This Glass Marinade Set just upped the game on marinating our favorite steaks, fish and even vegetables. Behold this two-piece set with a Glass Carafe, and a Basting Tool that happens to defy gravity.
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